Facile one-step synthesis and enhanced photocatalytic activity of a WC/ferroelectric nanocomposite. Issue 40 (1st September 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zhang, Man; Wang, Yaqiong; Liu, Jianguo; Thangamuthu, Madasamy; Yue, Yajun; Yan, Zhongna; Feng, Jingyu; Zhang, Dou; Zhang, Hongtao; Guan, Shaoliang; Titirici, Maria-Magdalena; Abrahams, Isaac; Tang, Junwang; Zhang, Zhen; Dunn, Steve; Yan, Haixue
• Is Part Of: Journal of materials chemistry. Volume 9:Issue 40(2021)
• Page Start: 22861
• Page End: 22870
• Publication Date: 2021-09-01
• Subjects: Materials -- Research -- Periodicals; Chemistry, Analytic -- Periodicals; Environmental sciences -- Research -- Periodicals; 543.0284
• DOI: 10.1039/d1ta04131b
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2050-7488

Abstract

Abstract : A WC/RbBi2 Ti2 NbO10 nanocomposite exhibits excellent photocatalytic behaviour, which is attributed to its ferroelectric nature and the loaded WC as a cocatalyst. Abstract : The development of noble-metal-free co-catalysts is seen as a viable strategy for improving the performance of semiconductor photocatalysts. Although the photocatalytic efficiency of ferroelectrics is typically low, it can be enhanced through the incorporation of a co-catalyst into nanocomposites. Here, we demonstrate the influence of ferroelectricity on the decolorization of rhodamine B under simulated solar light using RbBi2 Ti2 NbO10 and compared the performance with that of non-ferroelectric RbBi2 Nb5 O16 . The decolorization rate for RbBi2 Ti2 NbO10 was 5 times greater than that of RbBi2 Nb5 O16 . This behaviour can be explained in terms of ferroelectric polarization, which drives the separation of charge carriers. The photocatalytic activity of RbBi2 Ti2 NbO10 was further enhanced to over 30 times upon preparing a nanocomposite with tungsten carbide (WC) through high energy ball milling. This enhancement was attributed not only to the increased specific surface area, but also to the incorporated WC co-catalyst, which also serves as a source of plasmonic hot electrons and extends the photocatalytic activity into the visible light range. The WC/RbBi2 Ti2 NbO10 nanocomposite shows interesting water oxidation properties and evolves O2 with a rate of 68.5 μmol h −1 g −1 and a quantum yield of 3% at 420 nm. This work demonstrates a simple route for preparing WC containing nano-ferroelectric composites for solar energy conversion applications.